Angel in the Storm
by Amaitae
Summary: Ocarina of Time; Malon X Link fic. Rated T for violence. Fluff/Chaste love. Link, barely breathing, arrives at Lon Lon Ranch right before a strong storm. How will Malon tend to his lethal injuries before his heart stops? You may be harsh with reviews if you wish. I wrote this more for fun as I'm not a writer. (Possible medical/cardiophilia fluff?)


The skies were uneasy. A setting sun bled crimson onto looming grey clouds. Ominous winds blew, rustling the parched grass of Hyrule Field as they traveled to a small ranch on the top of a hill. The wind whirled nosily against the creaky wooden buildings of the ranch, then fell to silence. Some horses in the corral grew uneasy and began to whinny; eyes widening and on the verge of panic. Something was afoot. Autumn leaves were suddenly kicked up from the earth by the strong gusts, spooking the horses and sending them into flight toward their stables. Terrified hooves trampled the dry ground. Wild manes whipped the heavy air.

Hearing the commotion, a young woman emerged from one of the buildings and was taken aback by the heavens' intimidating display. The wind blasted through her long red hair in a threatening manner.

"Dear Farore..." she prayed, "what brings such an ominous wind?" Cautiously, she stole into the stables to check on and secure her horses. She took note of the scent in the air as she ran to the barn: musky and bitter, like dying leaves, mixed with the moist and charged air of an advancing thunderstorm. _"Strange... it was all sunshine earlier today..."_ she remembered while tending to her frantic creatures.

Not a quarter of a mile from the ranch, a lone, heavy-set mare walked slowly to the howl of the wind's dirge. Her chestnut body and white mane was splashed like a canvas by another's deep red paint. The burden she bore was crooked and slumped over in the saddle, like a pitiful sack. It sway almost lifelessly to-and-fro with the rhythm of the horse's steps. As the mare grimly tread on, she misstepped in a hole in the earth and stumbled. The limp figure gurgled a restrained moan at the sudden jerk in the horse's gait. The body somehow maintained its balance and the animal marched on toward a set of wooden buildings on a hill. Slowly and painfully, she moved on. Another fierce wind roared and threatened to push her cargo off its seat, yet the body managed to barely hold on; the mare moved on. The dying body was wracked with tremors as it coughed through fluid. The mare moved on. More splashes of deep red fell to brittle grass. The mare, dutifully, moved on.

The red-haired girl considered staying in the barn for the duration of the unusual weather, but realized the sun was setting quickly. The oncoming storm was not going to spare the ranch. She decided it would be more prudent to get back inside the house before things got out of hand. Nervously, she opened the great wooden door of the barn and began to creep outside into the unrelenting wind. As she started to cross the land between the barn and her safe haven, she beheld a horrific sight.

"Epona?" she questioned in disbelief. An enormous, chestnut, Clydesdale mare with red smears on her flanks, neck, and mane walked up to and halted in front of her. Horse and maiden looked into one another's eyes in an attempt to communicate. The girl studied her old equine friend, soon finding the source of the red marks - a badly mangled young man sagging in the saddle. She gasped, the sight seared forever into her mind.

So much blood.

Shredded clothes.

Lacerated and swollen flesh.

"Malon..." the figure groaned.

"Link..." she whispered in horror. Her beloved knight was nearly unrecognizable.

Another wave of tremors shook the man as he choked on blood and fluid. The motion swayed his aching body so, that he drunkenly plummeted to the dirt. The girl managed to throw her arms out to slow, but unfortunately not stop, his fall.

"Goddesses!" she cried, "Link! Please, love, don't! No!" The young man, covered in blood, blemished her white blouse on contact. Using all her power and praying for strength, Malon dragged the fallen hero into her home as fast as she could before the storm unleashed its fury. It took every ounce of her will not to descend into a panic of helplessness. She dragged the injured man further across the floor of her house, upstairs, to the base of her bed, leaving a streak of blood on the wooden planks. After several attempts, she finally hoisted him onto a straw mattress in her bedroom. As soon as she got the chance, she pulled out a sharp dagger from her right boot. Clinging to the neck of Link's tunic and undershirt with one hand, she ran the blade through green and white fabric with the other in one swipe.

"Krrr...!" The fabric ripped open, revealing the reality of his beaten and bloody flesh. A legion of cuts and gashes created a macabre network upon Link's torso. Malon couldn't believe it.

"You..." she whispered, " You should be dead...!" Malon covered her mouth immediately after the word "dead" escaped her mouth. Afraid she may be too late, she quickly pressed a soft, trembling hand to the center of his flayed chest. She held it there for a moment... Link's drew breath quickly and without depth. His pulse was rapid; Malon could barely feel his heart beating.

_"He's still alive..."_ she assessed, _"but won't be for long! His heart is beating so fast..."_ Malon looked at Link's blood-drenched clothes. _"It's trying so hard to pump the little blood he has left. He doesn't have much time!"_

She tore into the kitchen, red hair thrashing in the air, to a cabinet and removed a medical kit. Putting the kit on a table, Malon examined the items inside. Rolls of gauze, bandages, scissors, a bottle of red potion, and other healing supplies made up its contents.

"Perfect!" she managed a small smile. Link might just have a chance. She rushed back to the straw bed, back to her dear, dying hero, and unpacked the kit. The supplies lay next to her patient as she cut off the rest of the fabric around his wounds. Gently, she removed his cap. His blond hair was clotted with dry blood. His face was very pale from blood loss, bruised, dirty, and his split lips were slowly bleeding. His arms were cut. Precious blood was leaking from the lacerations on his torso. Malon immediately went to work.

She ran back to the kitchen and took a large basin, filling it with cool, clean water. Careful not to trip and spill everything, she brought it back to Link's bedside. She first needed to clean Link's wounds in order to see them. _"A towel...!"_ Malon grabbed the white one from the pile of supplies she dumped on the straw. Into the basin it went, soaking up the pristine water. Malon took it out and wrung it. With the utmost care and tenderness, she dabbed Link's most severe injuries with the wet cloth. Dried blood began to loosen and wipe away. She continued to clean the wounds on his chest and stomach and soothe them with the cool towel. As she washed the cloth periodically, the blood it soaked up turned the water red. At last, his wounds were a bit cleaner than they had been.

Despite her careful efforts however, two of the deepest gashes began to ooze blood even more, their clots dislodged. "...Shit...!" It was unlike Malon to curse, but considering the circumstances, that was all she had to say. Outside, the thundering continued and it had now begun to rain heavily on the roof of her house. She took several gauze pads and pressed them hard against the two deep fissures in Link's skin. "Hold still!" she told them, though she knew her commands made no difference. She needed to close those wounds, and fast.

The wind howled mournfully against the wooden walls of her home. It seemed to want to come inside and take Link's soul with it. "Like hell you will!" she cried at it in defiance. A tiny silver glint of light caught her eye. It was a very thin needle; so thin, it bent with the slightest pressure of her finger, then returned to its original shape. Malon took the needle in her fingers and found thread near it. A few attempts, and the needle's tiny eye was threaded. Taking a deep breath, Malon pressed the needle through Link's skin, making the first stitch on the gash across his chest. "I'm so sorry," she whispered in discomfort. She never wanted to have to do this to him, but it was the only way. She made another stitch, and another, and another. As she stitched near the middle of his chest, she could again feel his hastened pulse under her working fingers. How close the wound was to his heart. It was as if his attacker was aiming right for it. _"If they had cut any deeper..."_ Malon shuddered at the thought. She had to focus. She had to save him. The first wound was soon closed up, and the blood around it was cleaned up again. Malon pressed a gauze to it firmly and moved on to close up the second wound, the one on Link's abdomen.

The laceration was only halfway closed when Malon's patient began to rouse. She froze, wide-eyed. Link groaned in pain and lifted his head up, trying to look up at his angel through bruised eyelids.

"Mal-"

"No!" Malon scolded instantaneously. "Lay your head back down and relax, now! Link, you were hurt real bad!" Tears welled up in her eyes but she refused to let them fall. Now was not the time. "You lost a lot of blood. You almost _died_, and you may yet! Lay back down. I'm trying -" her voice hitched, "I'm trying to fix you..."

Whether he obeyed her or just passed out again, Link slowly slumped back down onto the pillow. Malon regained her focus and finished stitching the second wound.

The worst was over with, but they weren't out of the woods yet. Link still had many cuts and bloody wounds on his body prone to infection, and he still needed to recover the copious amount blood he lost. Malon took the bottle of red liquid from the pile of supplies on the bed and uncorked it. It smelled of weak alcohol and various red berries, with a metallic undertone.

"This has to work," she breathed. Red potion was known to be effective in helping seal wounds, and functioned similarly to blood once it entered the veins. Malon grasped the towel she used before and saturated it with the syrupy red liquid. Slowly, she rubbed it into Link's wounds. It seemed to be helping a little. The wounds almost ceased their bleeding, and the smaller ones already closed up, becoming pink lines, with much less inflammation and swelling. Relief swept over Malon like a refreshing breeze. She dabbed a little more of the potion on Link's busted mouth, and a little over his bruised face. His lips were slightly parted, so she carefully poured a few drops of the potion in his mouth. Next, she carefully wrapped rolls or gauze around all his injuries, all of which had the potion rubbed into them. She allowed a smile to sneak across her face._ "He's going to be alright now. I just know it. He has to be."_

Malon finished bandaging Link and covered him up with an old quilt her mother made years ago. It was fairly dark in the room now. The sun had almost set completely, and the storm was still raging. Strong winds incessantly howled outside and the rain barraged the dwelling, but Malon knew she and her love were safe inside. The wooden ranch house had survived much more than just a windy storm. Large raindrops fell, and Malon watched as millions of them committed mass suicide upon the windows of the house, reflecting on what had just occurred at the ranch. What would have happened if she wasn't able to fix him? He lost an incredible amount of blood, would he be able to replenish it? How would his body deal with this trauma? She loved him with all her heart. And he loved her. Just as much. What if they never got to live out their lives together? Malon pushed these thoughts and fears from her mind, they were too exhausting to entertain now. The last thing she needed was anxiety over possibilities she couldn't control. She did what she could for him, to the best of her abilities. She tucked Link in some more in an attempt to give him the most security and warmth she possibly could. He needed to rest now. Malon left the bedside and sat down on the floor, leaning against a wall, exhausted, her labor of love complete. She watched vigilantly from there, making sure Link was breathing.

Several hours later, the rain began to stop. Malon had unintentionally fallen asleep; she sat slumped over against the wall. A distant peal of thunder suddenly woke her with a start. She looked around the room disoriented. The room was black with darkness now. She groggily stood up, a little sore from sleeping in an odd way. She felt around as she walked the edges of the room, looking for the oil lamp that was on her desk. At last she found it, along with the box of matches that sat next to it. She struck one against the box, and lit the lamp. The flame's warm yellow-orange glow radiated out into the room.

"Link?" she whispered almost inaudibly to see if he might be awake. The lamplight danced around the room as Malon turned around from the desk to face the straw bed. Link's face was illuminated by the light. His eyes were closed still, but his wounds seemed to have healed quite a bit within those hours thanks to the red potion. Malon slowly walked over to his bedside. He looked peaceful. Beaten to a pulp, yes, but peaceful in his sleep. His bandaged chest rose up and down calmly and evenly. She brushed the back of her hand on his forehead. It felt warm, but not hot. Just how it should be. Malon sat down on the bed, next to him. She leaned over, and turned her head to the side, placing an ear on Link's chest, right over his heart.

_Lub-dub lub-dub lub-dub..._

A soft sigh passed her lips, carrying away tension and stress with it. Malon relaxed and quietly listened as the hero's heart beat strong and steady inside him; the heart that refused to quit, as stubborn and courageous as the man it kept alive; the heart he gave to her. It still beat faster than normal, she noted, but it was much more controlled now that he'd started healing and his blood was replenishing. She was thankful he was making a quick recovery from the brink of death.

"I knew you could pull through. You're too strong to die now." Her whisper did not go unheard. Link stirred a little, and Malon rose her head off his chest to see if he was okay. His eyes slowly crept half-open, and he blinked sleepily. His vision was a little blurry, but he could make out Malon's face.

"You..." Link smiled weakly. Malon smiled back and lovingly stroked his disheveled hair.

"Yea, Link... It's me. Sweetheart, do you remember what happened?" she asked softly.

Link slowly shook his head no.

"Maybe you'll remember later. We'll talk about it when you're feeling better. You're still in bad shape. Do you need anything? Something to bring up your strength maybe?"

Her patient nodded slowly. Malon gently kissed Link's cheek, and bent down to pick up the bottle of remaining red potion from the floor. "Don't move now. Not a finger." She made her way to the kitchen again to fix a remedy.

Malon lit a fire under the stove and pulled out a small pot from a cabinet. She put the pot on the stove and poured a bottle of Lon Lon Ranch's famous milk into it. _"This should give him energy,"_ she mused as she heated the milk. Once it began to bubble a little, Malon uncorked the glass potion bottle again and poured the remaining tablespoons of potion into the milk. The mixture turned a slight pinkish-white hue. _"...and that should help him heal and regain blood quicker."_ Finally, she took a small pinch of salt, and mixed it into the new potion. Once finished, she poured her potion into a mug, and carried it back to the bedroom.

Link was still awake when Malon got back. "Not sure how great this will taste," she started, "but it will help you get better." Malon sat down next to Link and pushed an arm behind him and around his shoulders, helping him sit up. Link started to bring a hand up to the mug. "Try not to move around too much. Let me help you, love." She placed the mug to his lips and watched him sip, making sure he could swallow properly and did not choke.

The potion tasted odd, but it wasn't terrible. Link sipped it for a while, though his cut lips stung when the warm liquid touched them. He didn't mind. He was finally taking in some sort of energy - something that would fill and soothe his aching stomach. After a few minutes, Link was finished with his drink and Malon took the mug from him, setting it down on the desk. "Thank you," said Link.

"You're very welcome," Malon returned, her eyes glazed with love and affection. "I don't know what I would have done if I lost you."

Link looked down and noticed his tunic was gone and that his torso was bare, save for the bandages wrapped around him. He looked a little puzzled at their number.

"Don't touch those," said Malon, noticing the look on Link's face. "You were a mess. I had to stitch you shut. Just let them heal, Link."

"You saved my life, Malon. You and Epona."

"I'm glad she made it here in time for me to fix you up. You were flitting in and out of consciousness, I don't think you would have made it if she came here any later. Please, Link, don't scare me like this again. I don't want to lose you... Promise?"

Link nodded his head and, closing his eyes, lay back down in the straw. He was sore all over and wanted to go back to sleep.

"Hey, Mal..." Link groaned sleepily, "...Lay with me?" Malon's face flushed a little as she chuckled light-heartedly.

"Sure, Fairy Boy. If that's what you want."

Malon carefully slipped in under the quilt next to her hero avoiding touching or pushing on his wounds. He put his arm around her as she settled her head below his collarbone. She stroked his stomach with a feather-light touch as he drifted off to sleep. His deep breathing comforted her; her eyelids got heavier as time went by. Soon, her arms were around him in a tender, protective embrace, and she herself was falling asleep, confident she wasn't going to lose him in the night.

_"My love... You're going to be okay... You're going..."_ and sleep took hold before she could finish the thought.


End file.
